Revolver Ranis of Bihar star in electoral battles

Other than their political acumen, women candidates contesting in the ongoing Lok Sabha elections from Bihar also trust their weapons that they have listed in their affidavits filed with the nomination papers. Be it former chief minister Rabri Devi or rebel Janata Dal (United) legislator Anu Shukla, several women candidates across the political spectrum do not shy away from possessing arms at home.

Rabri, who is contesting from the Saran seat on the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) ticket, possesses a double barrel gun (No. 12693) along with 50 cartridges in her name, as per her affidavit. Her husband Lalu Prasad already has his own weapons – a .315 bore rifle with 50 cartridges worth Rs.1 lakh and a German-make pistol with 50 cartridges worth Rs.3 lakh. Krishna Kumari Yadav, RJD candidate from Khagaria constituency, too has a rifle worth Rs.1.25 lakh in her name. Incidentally, 39-year-old Krishna is the second wife of bahubali former MLA Ranvir Yadav.

Anu Shukla, the rebel JD(U) MLA from Lalganj seat, however, prefers to keep a 0.32″ pistol worth Rs.62,963 at home. Shukla, who has announced her resignation from the party to file her nomination papers from Vaishali constituency, is the wife of jailed bahubali and former legislator Vijay Kumar Shukla, better known as Munna Shukla.

However, it is not only the spouses of the Bihar’s “strongmen” who possess different arms. Former minister Parveen Amanullah, who is the Aam Aadmi Party candidate from the Patna Sahib seat, keeps a revolver worth Rs.40,000 at her home. Her husband Afzal Amanullah, a senior Bihar-cadre IAS officer, possess a gun and a rifle.

But it is Putul Devi, the BJP nominee from Banka constituency, who appears to have the maximum number of weapons at her disposal. As per her affidavit, Putul possesses a.315 bore rifle worth Rs.70,000, a 12 bore gun worth Rs.80,000, a .32 Webley Scott revolver worth Rs.2.50 lakh, a .22 rifle worth Rs.70,000 and a 28 bore gun worth Rs.55, 000.

But then, Putul’s late husband and former MP Digvijay Singh was a keen shooter and had also served as the president of the National Rifle Association of India for long before his untimely demise in 2010.

Their daughter Shreyasi Singh, a national-level shooter, has a Perrazi mx2000 shotgun worth Rs.2.5 lakh. And not just the women candidates, but spouses of some male candidates also have weapons in their names. For one, Manoranjan Singh “Dhumal”, who is contesting from the Maharajganj seat as the JD(U) candidate, has ‘gifted’ his wife Sita Devi a revolver apparently for her safety.

Courtesy: Mail Today